Two Days at the Africa Technology Expo 2026

We showed up to the Africa Technology Expo 2026 with a clear goal: put Haven in the right rooms, in front of the right people, and see what happens. Two of us attended, a friend who has believed in what Haven is building since before it had a name, and me. We spent both days fully on the floor from morning to evening. No booth. No speaking slot. Just the platform, the conversations, and two days of showing up with intention.

The Venue Set The Tone

Walking into the venue on the first morning told us immediately that this was not an ordinary event. The scale of it was bigger than we expected. The quality of the exhibitors and brands present was immediately visible. The organization and professionalism of the whole setup was the kind that makes you feel like the people who built this event genuinely cared about what it became. And the diversity in the room, Nigerian and international companies and founders standing next to each other, talking, exchanging cards, demoing products, was exactly the kind of environment Haven was built for. People from different backgrounds, different industries, different countries, all in one place trying to build something real.

What We Came To Do

We came with every intention of making the most of two days. We wanted to find potential partners, get Haven in front of investors and founders, learn what is actually happening across African tech right now, and connect with people building things that matter. We did not come to observe. We came to participate. The difference matters, and it showed in every conversation we had over those two days.

The Talks Changed How We Think

We attended talks and sessions across both days covering fintech, edtech, startup growth, the African tech ecosystem, and funding. Three things came up consistently across almost every session we sat in. First, technology adoption across Africa is accelerating faster than most people outside the continent realize. The numbers being cited were not projections. They were current. Second, collaboration between African companies is becoming the next major move. The era of competing in isolation is giving way to something more interconnected. Third, the funding landscape for African startups is shifting. New pools of capital are opening up, and the criteria for what gets funded is changing. All three of those things matter directly to Haven, and we left those sessions with a sharper sense of where we fit and where we are going.

The Brands We Connected With

Over the two days we had real conversations with people from MTN, Xanda Technologies, Jollof+, Baobab, Listed Hosting, Borderless Pay, Workforce Africa, Rift Technology, Fifthlab, Bmoni, and many more. Some conversations were one on one, quiet and focused, the kind where you actually get somewhere. Others happened in groups, spilling out of sessions and into corridors and common areas, the kind where one conversation becomes three. Every single one was worth having. The standout ones, and there were a few, stood out for different reasons. Some people immediately understood what Haven was trying to do without needing much explanation. Others challenged us with tough questions that made us articulate Haven more clearly than we had before. Some wanted to explore collaboration or partnership on the spot. And some were building products that complemented what Haven is doing in ways we had not considered before. Every one of those conversations made us better.

We Demoed Haven on the Floor

We showed Haven to people throughout both days. Not a polished sales presentation, just the real platform, walking people through what it does, why it exists, and where it is going. The energy when people saw it was consistently positive and excited. People leaned in. They asked follow up questions. They called colleagues over to look. The question we kept hearing was the same one we have heard before: why has something like this not existed before. We will keep hearing that question until Haven is everywhere it needs to be. We captured all of it, the demos on the floor, the sessions and panels, the networking moments in between. Those photos and videos are a record of Haven being exactly where it should be.

What Happened After

Multiple people followed up after the Expo. That alone tells us something important: the conversations we had were not just polite exchanges on a busy expo floor. They were real. People remembered Haven, and they came back. When someone takes the time to follow up after a two day event surrounded by hundreds of other companies and conversations, it means something landed. We are grateful for every one of those follow ups, and we are taking each one seriously.

A platform should do more than teach you something. It should get you somewhere.

Favour Ehis, Founder and CEO, Haven

The Biggest Takeaway

Looking back at the two days, the biggest takeaway was not one thing, it was everything at once. The Expo confirmed that Haven is solving a real problem. It showed us exactly where Haven fits in the African tech story. And it gave us relationships that will matter long term. We did not need all three of those things to make the trip worth it. Any one of them would have been enough. Getting all three in two days is the kind of outcome that keeps you moving.

We Left Energized

Two days. An impressive venue. Hundreds of conversations across sessions, demos, and networking floors. A handful of connections that will turn into something real. We left the Africa Technology Expo 2026 energized and motivated, not just because of what happened there, but because of what it confirmed. The funding landscape is shifting. Collaboration is the next move. Adoption is accelerating. And Haven is ready for all of it. We are just getting started.